The Trinity

The revelation of God as Trinity - One Divinity
in Three Persons, Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit
- is a mystery at the heart of all
of God's
mysteries. The Trinity is a revealed
truth
which cannot be explained thoroughly
by any
human construct, be it science, philosophy
or theology. Accepting the mystery
of God
as Trinity by faith, we are able to
make
some inroads into the mystery, with
guidance
from Scripture in light of the Spirit
and
the teachings of the Church.

At Baptism, each of us is freed from
the
stain of original sin in the name of
the
Trinity. Jesus' last instruction to
his Apostles
was: "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them in the name
of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28.19) The account of the
baptism of Jesus testifies to the dynamics
of the Trinity: "After Jesus was baptized, He came up from
the water and behold, the heavens were
opened,
and He saw the Spirit of God descending
like
a dove upon Him. And a voice came from
the
heavens, saying, 'This is My beloved
Son,
with whom I am well pleased.'" (Matthew 3.16-17)

The Three Persons of the Trinity are
of one
divine nature; they are not three deities,
but Three Persons in One Triune Being.
Through
Isaiah, God revealed: "I am the Lord and there is no other, there
is no God besides Me." (Isaiah 45.5) The offices of the
Three Persons of the Trinity (the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit), are expressed
in Church
teaching as Creation, Redemption, and
Sanctification.
Their offices spring from One Triune
Nature
which is the fullness of love, truth,
and
grace.

The prophet Isaiah reveals God the Father
as Creator: "Thus says the Lord: 'The heavens are My throne, the earth is My
footstool. What kind of house can you
build
for Me; what is to be My resting place?
My
hand made all these things when all
of them
came to be, says the Lord. This is
the one
whom I approve: the lowly and afflicted
[person]
who trembles at My word.'" (Isaiah 66.1-3) In this passage,
the Creator reveals His will to dwell
in
the soul of the humble heart of the
person
who worships the Son - the Word made
Flesh.
Humility of heart consists of seeing
ourselves
in the light of truth: lowly mortal
creatures
before the majesty of the Immortal
One. By
the love of the Father, we were created,
and in humility, we are able to love
Him
as His adopted children.

The Word of God has existed with the
Father,
as one in nature and substance, from
all
eternity: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1.1) In the fullness of time,
the Redeemer of the world, Jesus Christ,
was revealed: "And the Word became flesh and made His dwelling
among us, and we saw His glory, the
glory
as of the Father's only Son, full of
grace
and truth." (John 1.14) It is only through the
Son that we are able to approach God,
and
the Son has been entrusted with authority
over all by the Father: "All things have been handed over to Me by
My Father. No one knows the Son except
the
Father, and no one knows the Father
except
the Son and anyone to whom the Son
wishes
to reveal Him." (Matthew 11.27) By His sacrifice
on the cross and resurrection, Jesus
has
redeemed us from our sin in His merciful
love.: "For in Him, all the fullness was pleased
to dwell,
and through Him to reconcile all things
for
Him, making peace by the blood of his
cross." (Colossians 1.19-20) In the sacrifice
of the Son, we are redeemed.

The Holy Spirit has also existed from
all
eternity, sharing in one nature and
substance,
together with the Father and the Son.
In
the book of Genesis, we read: "The Spirit of God was moving over the face
of the waters." (Genesis 1.2 RSV) The Holy Spirit
is symbolized by a dove, as seen in
the Baptism
of Jesus: "the Spirit of God descending like a
dove upon Him." (Matthew 3.16) Following the resurrection,
Jesus sent the Holy Spirit into the
world:
"When the Advocate comes whom I will send
you from the Father, the Spirit of
truth
that proceeds from the Father, He will
testify
to Me." (John 15.26) and "He will guide you to all truth." (John 16.13) By the action of the
Holy Spirit, we are sanctified in the
light
of truth.

The mystery of God's presence within
us has
been characterized as the 'Indwelling
of
the Trinity'. Jesus gave this promise
of
the Indwelling: "Whoever loves Me will keep My word, and My
Father will love him, and We will come
to
him and make Our dwelling with him." (John 14.23) The Indwelling of the
Trinity is regarded as the highest
form of
spiritual perfection possible on earth:
"God is love… If we love one another, God
remains in us, and his love is brought
to
perfection in us." (1 John 4.8,12)

Bl. Elizabeth of the Trinity, OCD,
penned
this prayer to the Trinity: "O my God, Trinity whom I adore, help me forget
myself entirely so to establish myself
in
you, unmovable and peaceful as if my
soul
were already in eternity. May nothing
be
able to trouble my peace or make me
leave
you, O my unchanging God, but may each
minute
bring me more deeply into your mystery!
Grant
my soul peace. Make it your heaven,
your
beloved dwelling, and the place of
your rest.
May I never abandon you there, but
may I
be there, whole and entire, completely
vigilant
in my faith, entirely adoring, and
wholly
given over to your creative action." (Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity,
Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph
260)
Holy Spirit, our life and guide,
Lead us in the way of the Son;
In love and truth, may we abide
With the Father, dwelling as one. Amen.